How New York Giants Can Start Win Streak Against Seattle Seahawks

The New York Giants are riding high after their first win of the season. In a rather tough matchup on paper, New York defeated the favorite Denver Broncos 23-10.

The Giants did a lot right and a lot of what should have been done earlier in the season. Regardless, New York now moves onto another tough opponent: the Seattle Seahawks.

With all of this in mind, here is how the Giants can defeat the Seahawks and begin their first winning streak of the season.

Keep the Fluker-Pugh Duo Intact

Fans, reporters, and analysts have been calling this for a while. However, it took until Week 6 for head coach Ben McAdoo to finally move Justin Pugh to the right tackle position. In turn, D.J. Fluker moved to the right guard position. With this move, the Giants have solved their offensive line problem.

The major key to victory was that Pugh and Fluker were able to keep Broncos star linebacker Von Miller at bay. This, in turn, helped the Giants offense get going, in both the running game and the passing game. With the left side of the line still problematic, it is encouraging that the right side is a stalwart.

If last week meant anything, the Giants have to keep this duo intact, especially with a tough Seattle defense on the horizon.

Don’t Let Up on the Run Game

New York’s rushing game finally came to life last week, thanks to a strong game from Orleans Darkwa. As mentioned above, the right side of the 0-line was phenomenal last week, allowing Darkwa to find openings and hit pay dirt.

The problem throughout the season was McAdoo’s questionable decisions to give up on the run game in the second half. Especially when the Giants had leads in the second half, which was rather mind boggling. With a lead, the tendency of any NFL team is to kill the clock. Stopping the clock on pass plays will not help, which has costed the Giants victories. Now with offensive coordinator Mike Sullivan calling the shots on offense, the run game flourished.

Darkwa had his way against the No. 1 overall defense in the league last week. Now, he faces off against a Seahawks defense that has had trouble against the run. Seattle has the sixth worst rush defense in the league, where they have allowed an average of 127.2 yards per game. With a breakout game last week, the Giants should continue to use the run game, especially in this favorable matchup.

Tight End is Your Best Friend

The Giants receiving corps took a huge hit, as they lost Odell Beckham Jr, Brandon Marshall, and Dwayne Harris for the season after Week 5. Sterling Shepard is listed as questionable for this Sunday’s game.

Now, the receiving core consists of Roger Lewis, Tavarres King, and Travis Rudolph. With Lewis having the most starting experience out of the receivers, the Giants force too much on the youngsters. So, when in a situation like this, do what any other team in the same predicament would do: throw to the tight end.

New York implemented this move last week, as five of the 11 pass completions went to Evan Engram. In a coming out party last week, Engram had 82 receiving yards and a touchdown reception.

With facing off against “The Legion of Boom” pass defense, a lot of the young receivers will have their hands full with the likes of Richard Sherman and Earl Thomas. While it may seem like a hard task, let’s not forget that the Giants had success against the tough Broncos pass defense with this strategy.

Giants Front Four Has to Feast on Seattle O-Line

With Olivier Vernon out with an ankle injury last week, the Giants defensive line looked to be at a disadvantage. Someone didn’t deliver the memo to Jason Pierre-Paul and Damon Harrison.

Pierre-Paul recorded three sacks and a forced fumble, while Harrison had one sack against Broncos quarterback Trevor Siemian. The pair did not let the pressure of manning the line get to them, and the same can be said for this week.

While the Giants o-line issues have been well documented, so have the Seahawks. Seattle has had vicious blows to the line in terms of health. The team lost standout George Fant to a torn ACL in the preseason, and Luke Joeckel just had knee surgery that will keep him out four-to-five weeks.

The o-line from the Emerald City has been notoriously sluggish, as quarterback Russell Wilson has, for the most part, been running for his life. Luckily he is a mobile quarterback, but still, you don’t want your signal caller getting gassed every game this season. With the Giants defense having their strongest game yet last week, they have the perfect chance to build on that. Especially with a weakened Seattle o-line standing across from them, the Giants d-line should have a field day.

The Giants shocked the world last week, and they look to do the same thing this Sunday at MetLife Stadium. Will the Giants stun us all again and enter their bye week on a two game win streak? Or will they enter their bye on an all too familiar loss?